Tag: McDonald’s All-American Game

Isaiah Collier dazzles in McDonald’s All-American Game

The only thing Isaiah Collier didn’t do well: hit free throws. Otherwise, he was very strong, scoring 25 points at the #McDAAG.

The past 48 hours have been very exciting for USC basketball fans. Isaiah Collier did well in the workouts preceding the McDonald’s All-American Game. He made an effort to recruit Bronny James to USC.

Bronny James finished second in the dunk contest attached to the McDonald’s showcase. James played well in Tuesday night’s McDonald’s game, working with Collier — a teammate — on a number of plays.

Collier, though, was at the center of the action. The USC commit showed why he is the No. 1 recruit in the country, scoring 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field. Collier did stumble at the free throw line, going just 5 of 12 and missing a pair of late-game foul shots, but that was his only real weakness on Tuesday. Otherwise, he was superb. It’s precisely this kind of electric, high-end talent USC has needed from a point guard for the past several years, ever since Jordan McLaughlin left the program.

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Bronny James excels in McDonald’s All-American Game

There’s a lot of debate about how high Bronny James’ ceiling is as a player, but on #McDAAG night, he looked good.

Bronny James was sensational in Tuesday night’s McDonald’s All-American Game.

James was highly impressive, scoring 15 points on 5-for-8 shooting – with all five of his baskets coming from 3-point range – in the East’s 109-106 win over his West team.

James, a five-star prospect, is the only player invited to play in the McDonald’s All-American Game who remains uncommitted for the 2023-2024 college basketball season. Per 247 Sports, James has offers from Memphis, Ohio State and USC, and he has also expressed interest in the Oregon Ducks.

Outside of James, perhaps the most well-known players to take the court Tuesday night were Andrej Stojakovic and D.J. Wagner. Stojakovic is the son of longtime NBA sharpshooter Peja Stojakovic. He has committed to Stanford. Wagner is the son of former NBA player Dajuan Wagner and grandson of former NBA player Milt Wagner, who helped lead Louisville to the 1986 national title.

Among the main All-American Game invitees, Isaiah Collier is committed to USC. D.J Wagner, Justin Edwards, Aaron Bradshaw, and Reed Sheppard all have committed to Kentucky. (Sheppard is the son of former Kentucky players Jeff Sheppard and Stacey Reed Sheppard.) Duke was also well-represented with commits Mackenzie Mgbako, Sean Stewart and Jared McCain making the All-American Game rosters.

Several months ago, many scouts were unsure about Bronny James’ NBA stock. However, more recently, his evaluations have improved, so much so that an ESPN mock draft had him going No. 10 in the 2024 NBA draft.

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Bronny James impresses at high school dunk contest

Bronny James was a high-flying centerpiece of the dunk contest attached to the McDonald’s All-American Game, finishing 2nd.

Bronny James has not committed to a collegiate program yet, but he continues to show what he can bring to a team this fall.

James, who has USC on his top three list along with Ohio State and Oregon, participated in the Powerade Jam Fest Dunk Contest at the McDonald’s All-American Game.

The Sierra Canyon five-star prospect, a 6-foot-3 combo guard, finished second in the dunk contest and wowed the Houston audience with a spectacular arsenal of jams.

Bronny topped every other participant except one: The winner was Duke commit Sean Stewart, the son of NBA veteran Michael Stewart, who played for the Cleveland Cavaliers a season before the franchise selected LeBron James at No. 1 straight out of high school in 2003. The elder Stewart even teamed with LeBron for eight games in the pros.

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Isaiah Collier impresses at McDonalds’ All-American Game workouts

For many CBB insiders, the McDonald’s All-American workouts are more important than the game. Collier is making the grade.

If you talk to college basketball industry insiders, the people who spend all 12 months a year studying players and following the pipeline from high school to the college game, many of them will tell you that the McDonald’s All-American Game workouts and practices are more revealing and interesting than the actual game. The workouts are closely observed by evaluators and experts. The game is hardly irrelevant, but it can easily devolve into an exhibition-style display one might associate with the NBA All-Star Game. The workouts are more serious than the game, which is a time to have fun in front of the cameras on television.

The consensus view from onlookers at McDonald’s All-American Game workouts is that incoming USC Trojan guard Isaiah Collier, the No. 1-ranked recruit in the country, is living up to the advance billing. He might not be exceeding the hype, but he definitely isn’t disappointing. The more people see him, the more he comes across as the real deal. That’s what USC is looking for.

If Collier really is as good as advertised — if he can meet the expectations placed upon him — USC has wing and frontcourt depth with a bunch of young players poised to make notable improvements. Having the elite point guard the program has lacked since Jordan McLaughlin several years ago gives the Trojans one of their most complete rosters in recent memory. They won’t have Evan Mobley, but they will have a floor general who can give the Men of Troy one of their best offenses in school history.

It’s a great time to be a fan of USC basketball.

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WATCH: Texas basketball signees shine during McDonald’s All-American Game

Two future Longhorns had some highlight reel plays.

Two future Longhorn hoopers had the opportunity to play in the prestigious McDonald’s All-American Game.

Five-star forward Dillon Mitchell and five-star point guard Arterio Morris both suited up for the East team on Tuesday night, and the duo helped lead their team to a blowout victory of the West team. Their appearance in the game marks the No. 21 and No. 22 players in Texas history to participate.

The East easily overwhelmed the West en route to their 24-point victory, and both Mitchell and Morris had moments where they were standing out amongst the nation’s best high school players.

Mitchell, who ranks as the No. 14 overall recruit in the country, finished the game with nine points, four rebounds, and two assists. He also had some extremely acrobatic finishes and dunks.

Morris, the No. 19 overall recruit who was originally slated to play for the West team but was switched to the east squad after some players were unable to play, finished with 12 points, three assists, and one steal. He and Mitchell both showed flashes that should have Longhorns fans excited.

Morris and Mitchell are accompanied by four-star guard Rowan Brumbaugh in Texas’ 2022 recruiting class and will look to help continue the momentum Texas built under Chris Beard in year one.

Notre Dame commit J.J. Starling makes U.S. team for Nike Hoop Summit

A big month is coming up for a future Notre Dame player.

J.J. Starling, the most anticipated Notre Dame commit in years, is going to be very busy over the next month. In the last week of March, he will take part in the McDonald’s All-American Game in Chicago. A week-and-a-half later, he will get the opportunity to represent the U.S. in competition for the first time. That’s because he has been selected to play for his country in the Nike Hoop Summit, an annual game between the best U.S. players and the best international players ages 19 or younger.

Starling, who attends La Lumiere in La Porte and participated in a 2019 U.S. junior national minicamp, will be part of the first Nike Hoop Summit since 2019. COVID-19 has forced the event’s cancelation over the past two years. The international roster for the game, which is taking place in Portland, Oregon, will be announced later.

Starling is believed to be taking the roster spot of Cason Wallace, who signed a letter of intent with Kentucky in November.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Incoming Notre Dame guard J.J. Starling named to McDonald’s Game

Nice honor for the kid.

For only the second time since 2005, a future Notre Dame player has been named a McDonald’s All-American. J.J. Starling, who hails from Baldwinsville, New York, but is playing this season at La Lumiere in La Porte, is the first McDonald’s All-American to represent Notre Dame since Demetrius Jackson in 2017. As part of the honor, Starling will take in the McDonald’s All-American Game in Chicago in March. Barring another COVID-19 cancellation, this will be the first game actually played since 2019.

Starling is not merely a great player who happened to pick the Irish as his landing shop. Per 247Sports, he is the Irish’s top-ranked recruit since 2000. Once he put pen to paper, he replaced Jackson as No. 1 in that category. Talk about a strange coincidence.

Of course, you never know how players are going to perform in their collegiate careers. On the aforementioned list, Irish freshman phenom Blake Wesley doesn’t even rank in the top 20. It really is all speculation based on how they perform before college. Let’s hope they get it right with Starling.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Notre Dame roster for 2021-22 season

Who will be hooping it up for the Irish this season?

It feels like college basketball remains far away, but Midnight Madness just happened, so it’s closer than you think. To that end, we should look at who makes up Notre Dame’s roster for the upcoming season. Many believe this is the team that can get the program out of the doldrums and back on track towards respectability. A major step in getting people to believe that would be the Irish’s first NCAA Tournament selection since 2017, which also was the last year they finished above .500 against ACC opponents.

This will be the 22nd iteration of the Irish with Mike Brey as coach. Despite having more wins than anyone in program history, he has two losing seasons in the past three and three losing conference records over the past four years. If he isn’t able to get this group to reach its full potential, questions about his future in South Bend certainly will arise. Here are the players who could determine where both Brey and the program headed going forward:

McDonald’s 2020 All-American Game: Boys and Girls rosters unveiled

The official McDonald’s 2020 All-American Games rosters were unveiled on Thursday afternoon.

The rosters for the McDonald’s 2020 All-American Games were unveiled on Thursday afternoon with the next wave of boys and girls set to play in the annual game on April 1.

Five-star recruits Evan Mobley, Scottie Barnes, Jalen Green and Jalen Suggs among others headline the deep roster of boys set to participate in the event in Houston.

Meanwhile, five-star prospects Paige Bueckers, Angel Reese, Cameron Brink and Caitlin Clark are among the girls to earn an invitation to play in the game.

Most boys and girls have committed to a college while some are still undecided.

Forty-eight high school seniors – comprising the top 24 girls and
24 boys in the country – were selected by a committee of basketball experts from more than 900 nominated players.

The players unveiled on Thursday will look to leave their mark and attempt to join recent MVP winners like Cole Anthony, Nassir Little, Sabrina Ionescu, Jordan Horston and others.

The games will be telecast live on ESPN and ESPN.

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